Issue - meetings

To bring forward the proposals for aligning further Terms and Conditions and to agree to commence delivery (report of the Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development (PSPS) enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Human Resources & Organisational Development (PSPS) which brought forward proposals for alignment of further Terms and Conditions and sought Council agreement to commence delivery.

The Portfolio Holder for Corporate and Environmental Servicespresented the report which detailed the next phase of the Partnership’s Terms and Conditions alignment work. He stated that several terms, conditions and employment policies had previously been aligned and a shared pay structure had been implemented for shared officers. The report proposed further alignment of seven terms and conditions and three employment policies as summarised at point 2 of the report, with relevant full policy documents set out at Appendices A, B and C. It was noted that the report had been considered by the Policy Development Panel and if approved by Council, would proceed to consultation.

• Members referred to the recommendations and queried whether any constraints applied to the delegated authority given to the Chief Executive to make future revisions.
  • The Assistant Director – Governance (Monitoring Officer) clarified that: recommendation ‘a’ granted delegated authority to undertake consultation on the proposed changes; and recommendation ‘b’ allowed implementation after consultation, provided the changes did not exceed those approved by Council. Therefore, the delegation did not allow unrestricted or enhanced changes beyond those set out in the report.

DECISION:

That Council:

a)     Delegated authority to the Head of Paid Service: to lead the employment consultation(s) (excluding those related to the Chief Executive) to further revise Terms and Conditions of employment to seek greater alignment across the South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership; and to implement an enhanced on-call provision for the Housing Landlord Services Team at South Holland District Council who undertake emergency repairs outside of working hours;

b)     Delegated authority to the Head of Paid Service, in consultation with the Portfolio Holder, to implement revised Terms and Conditions (excluding those that impact the Chief Executive), after staff and union consultation taking into consideration any changes that arise through consultation from the workforce and unions, provided changes are less than or equal to those approved by Council. This includes approving any new policies and policy updates required for implementation; and

c)     Approved an amendment to the Pay Policy Statement 2026/27, if following a period of consultation, the proposed changes were implemented as set out in this report, specifically for South Holland District Council, the details related to: ‘Redundancy and Severance Payments’ would be amended.

To consult Policy Development Panel on the policies prior to Full Council (report of the Head of HR & OD – PSPS enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Human Resources & Operational Development – (PSPS) which asked the members to provide feedback on the proposals to facilitate Phase 2 of the alignment of terms and conditions of employment across South & East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership Councils.

The Head of HR & OD (PSPS), presented the report and highlighted the following three policy amendments;

1. Car Loan Policy – to be replaced with a new partnership?wide policy:
2. Annual Leave (Time Off Policy) – Appendix amendment only; and
3. First Aid Payment Policy – Appendix amendment only.

The Head of HR & OD (PSPS) confirmed that all annual leave figures referenced were exclusive of statutory bank holidays, which would be added separately within the policy. Clarification was also provided regarding the forecast financial impacts; cost implications were included within the report. Formal consultation with staff and recognised unions were proposed, and therefore implementation would not occur until consultation and Council approval were complete.

Members considered the report and raised the following questions:

·         Members sought clarification on the forecast costs associated with the proposals.

o   The Head of HR & OD (PSPS) responded that the figures represented anticipated costs for South Holland, with any increases largely arising where operational services such as Waste Operations would require backfill to cover additional annual leave. For other services, additional annual leave was not expected to be a direct cost, as work would be picked up on return. The uplift to first aider payments was minor and aligned with the BBC model and was in line with NJC awards.

·         Members queried the wording of the Car Loan Policy regarding recovery through civil proceedings and asked whether the Council would recover associated costs as well as any outstanding balance and interest.

o   The Head of HR & OD (PSPS) advised that:

o   The Council would follow its standard debt?recovery process via Credit Control and the local courts, where costs were generally minor; any escalation to solicitors would be assessed on a case?by?case basis; and

o   The policy wording would be clarified to refer to ‘interest and associated costs’ and further noted that, where feasible, outstanding amounts would first be recovered from final salary, or otherwise by repayment plan, and that proportionality would be considered where recovery costs might outweigh the remaining debt.

·         Members asked that references to annual leave entitlements be made clear if excluding statutory bank holidays, and that this wording be applied consistently across the Time Off Policy appendix tables.

o   The Head of HR & OD (PSPS) confirmed that annual leave figures quoted excluded bank holidays and agreed to mirror the wording across both tables for consistency.

·         Members raised concerns that the proposed alignment of first aider allowances could lead to a disproportionate increase in the number of trained first aiders.

o   The Head of HR & OD (PSPS) explained that first aiders were nominated and coordinated by the Health and Safety Team, that numbers would be kept proportionate to operational need, and that an uncontrolled increase  ...  view the full minutes text for item 76